As the next Roanoke budget nears approval with job reductions proposed and projects being tossed aside, questions remain about millions in pandemic relief money and surplus school funds, which the city now controls.
About $19 million in former school money is available — and the city may have millions in unspent pandemic relief funds to also allocate. Key questions preceding a scheduled city council budget vote Monday: What is the exact amount of money available, and what will the council agree to do with it?
Roanoke received $64.5 million — the highest amount in the region — in pandemic relief, also known as the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, or ARPA. As of March, more than $15 million of that money remained in a city account, according to municipal documentation. That includes about $6 million in interest earned on the ARPA money since the program began, according to city Treasurer Tasha Burkett…